Guarantees and Goodness

I love a good guarantee. Tell me that my tires will last for at least five years and guarantee it. I want the thirty-year guarantee on my roof and a hundred-thousand-mile guarantee on my car. Sometimes I expect God to operate this way.  If I do good things then God must be gracious to me.  If I am a part of making the world better, then I am not allowed to suffer. The words of the prophet Amos help me to understand that God is not a salesperson selling righteous actions, he is a companion, father, and mediator for the whole world. Amos says,

“Hate evil and love good,
and establish justice in the gate;
it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts,
will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.”

In these two powerful verses the one word that strikes me is “may.”  Amos reminds us that God may or may not act in the beneficial ways we want. But joining God on a mission of goodness and justice is worthwhile anyway.  While we may never become truly altruistic, we are invited to set down our quid pro quo with God.  We can work towards doing good for goodness’ sake, loving for love’s sake, and establishing justice because it is right. When we do these things, we join God in the hard work of restoring the world to the place it was created to be. It may not make us rich; it may not make life easy for us, but it will align us with our loving and life-giving savior.

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